Cutlery sharpener



May 19, 1953 L A. HOEK l 2,638,720

CUTLERY SHARPENER 2 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Jan. 2, 1951 EG' EG. 5.

INVENToR. E0 HOEK May 19, 1953 L. A. HOEK 2,638,720

CUTLERY SHARPENER Filed Jan. 2, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. E0 A?. #05e F .6. BY

[G M11/M WmeA/E/ Patented May 19, 1953 `UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE oUTLRY SHARPENR Leo Hoek, Los Angeles, Calif@ Application January 2, 195i, serial Nb. 26415119 (ol,y 51-^1o2 7 Claims.

This invention relates to sharpening devices, and particularly to a machine having a rotating grinding wheel for knives. ha'toliets, and tools `having similar forms of blades.

Grinding apparatus been known and used,` two forms being shownl in U. S. Patents No. 1,756,710 and No, 2,052,837. The 'grinder of the present invention is especially adapted `for sharpening cutlery of different shapes' and sizes and the sharpening may b'e clone `by inexperienced operators with the saine results kas when done by experienced operators. The grinder embodies a knife guiding and positioning' bracket which is adjustable both toward and away from the grinding wheel to accommodate various sized knives, and which is adjustable with respect to the surface of the wheel to obtain diiierent angles on the' blades being' ground.

The machine is silent operation and sharpens a blade in a few seconds, providing an edge' which is proper for the type of tool being sharpened. It has few parts, is economical to1 build, and is' oarticularly sturdy and rugged.

The principal object of the invention, therefore, is to facilitate' the grinding and sharpening o cutlery.

Another' object of the invention'is to provide an improved grinder for cutlery.

A further' object of the invention is to provide an improved grinding machine which is easily operatedl and' adjustable for cutlery o different types and sizes.

Although the novel feat "es which are' believed to be characteristic of th invention will be pointed out' with particularity in the appended claims, the manner off its organization and the inode of operation will be better understood by referring to the following" description, read in conjonctionwith the accompanying drawings, forming apart hereof, inwhi'ch:

Fig. l is a plan view of a grinder embodying the invention with the cover partially removed.

Fig, 2 is a cross-sectional View' taken along the line 2--2Y of Fig. 1'. n

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional View' taken? along' the line 3"-3of Fig. 2; l

Fig. 4r is any en'd elevational view-` ofthe'4 cutlery holding andi positioning bracket taken along the line #All of Fig. 3l l i Fig. 5' is a side View ofthe bracket off Fig, 4.

Fig. 6 isl a plan View of a` modification of the braclretoi Figs. lL to i-inclli'sivefand" Fig. 'l is a cross-sectional Viewv of the' bracket modification shown in Fig?. 6 andtaleh along' the line-'offg 6'.

Referring now to the drawings, in 'which the saine numerals identify like eleihents, a liori- Zontal base 5 has legs 6 with suction cup feet 'i at three points under the base. A cover 9 having latch end I0 which hooks in an onening l l, is held by' thur'nb 'screw I2 when a slot in the cover is tted over the screw. Thecover may be in two Darts, `a Sinalle part I3 being r'ernov'ed from over the tool holding bracket 'when the lnachine is to be used,

,Mounted in vertically extending studs I4, i5, i6, and il from the base 5, is a Inotor i9 on the shaft 2 3? of which is the hub 2i of a grinding wheel 22. Screw and not combinations 23 hold the n'iotor on the studs. The hub 2l is held on the shaft by set screw 241, and the wheel 22 is lheld in position by the nut 25. A switch 26 on the cover 9 controls the energizing and Cle-energizing of the motor IS, the wheel 22 being`l rotated the' no'rr'nal way, the direction of rotation beingas' shown by the arrow in Fig. 3, which is against the edge of the blade being sharoened. A tr'o'irgh 2l is nrov'ided in the base to` accom modate wheels of large sizes.

`To position the blade of the knife or other tool properly, so' that it is only necessary to' move it across the rim.' of the wheel, the bracket shown generally aty 23 is used. This bracket has an outer' backing shoe 3l! and an inner shoe 3l hinged on a pin 32y passing through parallel extending rlanges'liron'i the lower portion of shoe' 3i), one iiange` being shown at 33; The shoe 3K9 has wing flanges 3'4 and 35, frange' 3e having threaded therein one end o'fl aV carriage rod 3E and `also has a drill hole therein in which a threaded. bolt` 3'! i's rotatable by finger knob 3o'. The rod 3G is slida-bl'e in two upright studs 39 and `lle from the base 5, std 40 having a wide portion ill, in which bolt 31 is threaded. A coil tension spring 132 surroundsy bolt 31 and a-buts extension il and flange Thus', by turning bolt 31, both shoes 3 and 3l arev moved either toward or away from the rim of` thewlieel 2Q, the spring l2 moving the flange away from the wheel when the bolt 31 is backed off.

handi nut 4y threadable thereon. The rod cl3 is sli'dable on astrid 4t from the base 5, while the endo bolt fifiv has a head 4-7, the bolt,A passing throughV thes'ide vflange from'shoe 3i. Thus, rotation of the nut in one direction will draw the shoeSi toward the shoe', and whenthe nut is" rotatedinL the reverse direction; a springtl on the bolt 44 will separate the shoes. The shoes may thus be adjusted with respect to one another to accommodate cutlery of different thicknesses, while the position of the shoes is adjusted to position the blade edge at a point substantially on a horizontal plane through the axis of the wheel. This is the proper adjustment as shown by the edge of a portion of a blade 50 in Fig. 3. The blade is then simply drawn between the shoes iirst on one side, then the other, until the desired sharpness is obtained.

As shown plainly in Fig, 2, the wheel 22 has a beveled rim, and it is noted in Fig. l that the opposing surfaces of the shoes 35 and 3| are at the same angle. The edges of the blades, therefore, contact the flat surface of the wheel rim, which is the proper contact between the blade and wheel. If wheels with different bevels are used, shoes with different angles may be substituted for shoes 3U and 3|. An angle of approximately ten degrees has been found desirable.

To obtain the correct position of and guide the blade against the wheel, the outer shoe 3l) has a curved cut-out portion 52 and a substantially hat upper surface 53. The shoe 3| has a curvedl blade contacting surface and has a cut-out slot 5| therein to accommodate the wheel 22. It has been found that the shape and design of these shoes and their adjustability, as described above, permits beginners to sharpen blades expertly by grinding.

To avoid shoe substitutions to obtain different holding angles for the blades, the shoes 55 and 56, which are hinged at 51, are similar in shape to shoes 30 and 3|, but rotatable about a vertical axis passing through a screw 58, which holds the shoes on a carriage block 59. (See Figs. 6 and '7.) The carriage block is slidable toward and away from the wheel in the plane of the wheel in a rectangular groove or trough 6| in the base 60, which has the general form of the base 5. The block has an opening 62 therein, the rear portion 63 having a screw 64 with a finger knob 65 threaded therein, the screw being rotatable in a fiange 66 of the base. Thus, turning of the screw 64 moves the shoes I 55 and 56 toward and away from the wheel 22,

as does screw 31 in the other gures. When the shoes are properly positioned, a clamp 68 on a bolt BB is tightened by wing nut 1U on carriage 59. Thus, the edge of any blade may be positioned at any desired angle with respect to the rim surface of the wheel by simply loosening screw 58, rotating the shoes 55 and 56 to the desired angle, and then tightening screw 58. A bolt 12, with finger knob 13 and spring 14, is provided for shoes 55 and 56 to adjust their inner surfaces with respect to one another to accommodate blades of different thicknesses.

With the modification shown in Figs. 6 and '1, the shoes 55 and 55 may be quickly adjusted for a particular wheel and the sharpening accomplished quickly and expertly by inexperienced operators. A constant bevel will be ground on the blade at all points by simply drawing the blade across the wheel.

I claim:

1. A grinding machine comprising a base, a motor mounted on said base, a grinding wheel rotatable by said motor, said wheel having a rim, a blade guide mounted on said base adjacent said rim of said wheel, said blade guide including a pair of shoes, one shoe being closer to said Wheel than the other shoe, means joining said shoes for adjusting their inner surfaces with respect to one another, and means for adjusting both of said shoes simultaneously as a unit toward and away from said rim of said wheel in the direction of the plane of one side surface of said wheel, the shoe farthest from said grinding wheel having its surface facing said grinding wheel curved at the central portion thereof and said other shoe having a slot therein to permit the passage of the rim of said grinding wheel therethrough, and a curved surface facing said first mentionedshoe.

2. A grinding machine comprising a base, a motor mounted on said base, a grinding wheel rotatable by said motor, said wheel having a rim, a blade guide mounted on said base adjacent said rim of said wheel, said blade guide including a pair of shoes, one shoe being closer to said wheel than the other shoe, means joining said shoes for adjusting their inner surfaces with respect to one another, and means for adjusting both of said shoes simultaneously as a unit toward and away from said rim of said wheel in the direction of the plane of one side surface of said wheel, said shoes being rotatable on a vertical axis passing between said shoes and perpendicular to the axis of rotation of said wheel to vary the inner surfaces of said shoes with respect to the surface of the rim of said wheel.

3. A cutlery sharpener having a grinding wheel adapted to rotate against a blade to be sharpened, comprising a grinding wheel having a rim, a motor for rotating said wheel, a carriage, a pair of shoes mounted on said carriage and having opposing surfaces, screw means for simultaneously adjusting said shoes toward and away from said rim of said wheel, and screw means for adjusting the position of one of said shoes with respect to the other, said shoes being hinged together at the ends thereof, one shoe having a concave inner surface and the other shoe being slotted to permit passage of said rim of said wheel therethrough.

fi. A cutlery sharpener having a grinding wheel adapted to rotate against a blade to be sharpened, comprising a grinding wheel having a rim, a motor for rotating said wheel, a carriage, a pair of shoes mounted on said carriage and having opposing surfaces, screw means for simultaneously adjusting said shoes toward and awat7 from said rim of said wheel, and screw means for adjusting the position of one of said shoes with respect to the other, means being provided for simultaneously rotating said surfaces of said shoes on an axis passing between said surfaces of said shoes and perpendicular to the axis of rotation of said wheel.

5. A blade guide and positioner for blades to be sharpened by a grinding wheel having a rim, comprising a pair of shoes having opposing surfaces and their central planes substantially parallel, a portion of the opposing surface of one shoe being at, and another portion of said surface being concave, the other shoe having its opposing surface convex, said other shoe being slotted to permit passage of said rim of said Wheel therethrough, and means to hinge one end of one shoe to one end of said other shoe.

6. A blade guide and positioner in accordance with claim 5, in which means are provided to adjust the opposing surfaces of said shoes with respect to one another, and means are provided to simultaneously move said shoes toward and away from said wheel.

7. A blade guide and positioner in accordance with claim 6, in which further means are pro- Number Number Name Date Moore Mar, 24, 1914 Burt et al May 23, 1916 Harrier et al. May 13, 1924 Forshaw June 21, 1927 Kelley Sept. 3, 1929 Tuttle Apr. 29, 1930 Gorecky Apr. 26, 1932 Makarof Sept. 1, 1936 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date France Dec. 29, 1927 Great Britain Aug. 22, 1932 

